NASLite Network Attached Storage

Just a question to anybody using the ASUS M2N32 WS PRO.
I'm currently running a the above board fitted with a raid card (LSI Megaraid) in the first PCI-X slot and a PCI-E graphics card which blocks the second PCI-X slot (i thought i might use the second PCI-X slot in the future as i have another identical raid card). The graphics card looks like it is faulty (showing garbage on the screen) so i thought i'd take the opportunity to fit a PCI graphics card.
The system is stable - no shared IRQ's which i had no end of trouble on my last setup - but i'm worried that when i fit the PCI card i may run into problems
If you are using a PCI graphics card - which PCI slot are you using, and did you have to do anything particular in the BIOS setup re IRQ's?

Cheers

Colin

Just remove the video card all together, the unit will run headless.

Mike

This board works fine with pretty much any old PCI videocard, I use an ATI Rage 3D myself. I'd be very interested in seeing some benchmark numbers from you if possible as I was having issues with the very same setup.

I always thought you needed a video card installed for the system to boot.

Superboss - what problems did you have?

Well performance was quite dissapointing and I got quite inconsistent numbers:



This was on the machine in my signature below. The latest BIOS update from ASUS for M2N32 WS Pro was suppose to fix a PCI-X performance issue but I saw no improvement after upgrading. I changed pretty much everything in my box but the problem with initial "high" numbers then dropping to about 50% remains.

Superboss - I think my numbers were worse than yours. I'm ready to upgrade my LAN to Gigabit, but don't know if that'll increase my figures. I'm not too worried about speed ATM, reliability is what i'm after. All of the media content i have at the minute plays fine.
Did you have any IRQ problems?

Nope no IRQ problems and I've replaced pretty much everything hardware wise. I've switched to Win2k3 server for the time being as Im now using an areca controller instead.

Thanks
That gives me some peace of mind. I'd get it in the neck from the wife and my son if the server was offline for more than a few hours.

Can you tell me if the LSI MegaRAID SATA 300-8XLP card will have any problems running in the ASUS M2N32 WS PRO motherboard? This may be a dumb question, but I'd rather be safe then sorry. Or, can someone recommend a motherboard with a PCI-X slot? Thanks for your help.

Superboss: What type of CPU cooler are you using?

Until the PCI-X issue with the M2N32 WS Pro is completely resolved, I would not recommend buying this board. The only reason to go with a PCI-X raid controller is the lack of support for PCI-Express controllers in NASLite. PCI-E adapters have access to more bandwith and can easily be moved to new hardware if necessary. PCI-X is pretty much a dying standard and its hard to find new motherboards with PCI-X slots.

I already have the LSI 300-8XLP and now I need the motherboard to run it. Thats the problem I have.

I see, well I would not recommend getting the M2N32 WS Pro based on my experience with this board.

Not in my experience, in fact allot of server motherboards will even redirect their output to the serial port if there is not a video card. My Tyan K8WE motherboard does this.

Mike

Any suggestions on another motherboard with a PCI-X slot?